Episodios

  • Asking for Aid: ICE, Advocacy, and Bioethics

    Asking for Aid: ICE, Advocacy, and Bioethics
    Apr 13 2026
    In this episode, Dr. Bryan Pilkington speaks with Dr. Arthur Caplan on his effort to urge the American and International Red Cross to investigate alleged human rights and healthcare abuses in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facilities. Caplan describes reports of unsafe, prison-like conditions, arguing that these conditions warrant independent inspection under international humanitarian norms. He emphasizes that bioethicists have a special responsibility to speak out because many of the violations directly involve health, basic care, and the rights of vulnerable populations, especially children.

    Read the open letter here:
    Caplan, Arthur L. “An Open Letter to the American Red Cross and the International Red Cross: Calling for Immediate Humanitarian Visits to ICE Internment Facilities in Texas,” published March 16, 2026 in Bioethics Today, the website for the American Journal of Bioethics. https://tinyurl.com/openletterRedCross

    Guest:
    Dr. Arthur Caplan is the Drs. William F. and Virginia Connolly Mitty Professor of Bioethics, Department of Population Health, NYU Grossman School of Medicine.
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    15 m
  • Vaccines now: Politicians, science, and a new public health reality

    Vaccines now: Politicians, science, and a new public health reality
    Feb 24 2026
    A discussion on recent changes in U.S. vaccine policy, the impact on pediatric practice, and the ethical challenges created by shifting public health communication.

    Guests:
    Aviva Schein, MD, Pediatrician, Zufall Health
    J. Patrick Bardill, PhD, Assistant Professor & Microbiologist, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine
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    32 m
  • Why Accreditation Matters: Safeguarding Quality in Medical Education

    Why Accreditation Matters: Safeguarding Quality in Medical Education
    Jan 5 2026
    In this episode, Dr. Bryan Pilkington speaks with Dr. Veronica Catanese about accreditation in medical education and its role in ensuring quality standards for MD programs. They also discuss how recent legislative challenges have affected accreditation Element 3.3 (diversity programs and partnerships).

    Veronica Catanese, MD, is Senior Director of Accreditation Services at the Association of American Medical Colleges.
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    46 m
  • Academic Chutes and Ladders: Differential Attainment in Medical Education

    Academic Chutes and Ladders: Differential Attainment in Medical Education
    Oct 1 2025
    In this episode, Dr. Bryan Pilkington speaks with Dr. Gabrielle Finn on differential attainment, which refers to the variation in academic attainment between groups of students who share protected characteristics (such as religion, ethnicity and ability) and those who do not share the same characteristic.

    Report discussed:
    Gabrielle Finn, Jenny Twyford, Adam Danquah, Asieh Shomali. The Game of Academic Privilege: An Exploration of Differential Attainment at the University of Manchester. 2025. https://documents.manchester.ac.uk/display.aspx?DocID=76069
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    31 m
  • Healthcare Sustainability: Aligning Health and Environmental Ethics

    Healthcare Sustainability: Aligning Health and Environmental Ethics
    Aug 10 2025
    In this episode, Dr. Bryan Pilkington speaks with Kyle Tafuri, a healthcare sustainability expert, about the importance of aligning environmental sustainability with the mission of healthcare systems. Tafuri emphasizes that clean air, water, and healthy soil are fundamental to health and that healthcare institutions, as major employers and resource users, have both an ethical obligation and strategic opportunity to lead in sustainability.

    Kyle Tafuri is Vice President of Sustainability, Hackensack Meridian Health.
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    36 m
  • Beyond the Exam Room: Physicians as Advocates

    Beyond the Exam Room: Physicians as Advocates
    Jul 13 2025
    In this episode, Dr. Bryan Pilkington speaks with Dr. Lawrence Rosen about how advocacy extends beyond individual patient care to include public health, policy reform, and environmental sustainability. Rosen argues that physicians have an ethical obligation to use their trusted position to defend and promote health at all levels.

    Lawrence Rosen, MD is an Integrative Pediatrician and Founder of The Whole Child Center & Associate Professor at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine.
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    36 m
  • Does science have a PR Problem? Information, Misinformation, and the Politics of Medicine

    Does science have a PR Problem? Information, Misinformation, and the Politics of Medicine
    Jul 1 2025
    In this episode, Dr. Bryan Pilkington speaks with Dr. Arthur Caplan about on the evolution of bioethics from an academic niche to a more public-facing discipline that now must address misinformation and political polarization.

    Dr. Arthur Caplan is the Drs. William F. and Virginia Connolly Mitty Professor and founding head of the Division of Medical Ethics, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, Department of Population Health.
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    50 m
  • The Bioethics of "Baby Boxes"

    The Bioethics of "Baby Boxes"
    May 19 2025
    In this episode, Dr. Bryan Pilkington speaks with Dr. Lori Bruce on the ethical concerns surrounding baby boxes—devices used for the anonymous surrender of infants under Safe Haven laws. While good intentioned, Bruce argues these boxes lack regulation, informed consent, and support for vulnerable mothers. Evidence-based alternatives like confidential births and crisis counseling to better support families are discussed.

    Dr. Lori Bruce is Associate Director, Center for Bioethics, at the Yale School of Medicine.

    Episode Resources:
    Summer bioethics program:
    https://bioethics.yale.edu/summer

    Article about supported/confidential birth:
    https://bioethicstoday.org/blog/the-us-needs-confidential-birth/

    Open letter to HHS about box regulations:
    https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XDZMxjLSZPDUdOKT1yWHAf_e8vxW1QayxSgX3auANGE/

    Token: Handmade paper and textile heart [Foundling Museum]
    https://foundlingmuseum.org.uk/object/token-handmade-paper-and-textile-heart/
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    40 m